Looking Out For Jess
by Yankee01754
Sheriff Mort Corey sat passively at his desk listening to the two strangers - "bounty hunters" - he thought to himself as they made their report about how Jess Harper had attacked them.
"He had no reason to threaten us, sheriff. We were minding our own business."
"I know Jess," Mort countered. "He must have felt threatened."
"By us?" the other one asked.
"Never mind. I'll have a talk with him. I'm pretty sure I can get him to listen to reason," the lawman said, "so long as you drop your complaint."
Somewhat unwillingly, but not wanting to press their luck with this particular sheriff, the two strangers agreed.
"Where did you last see him?" Corey asked.
The two men told him they'd last seen Jess outside the saloon, then left before the sheriff could ask any more questions.
Mort stepped out onto the boardwalk and locked his office before going off to search for Jess.
It was a battered, bruised and bleeding Jess Harper that he found lying unconscious on the ground in the same alley he'd been dragged into and worked over.
"Jess," Corey reached out to see if he could find a pulse. It was there but rather erratic.
Jess was bleeding from his nose and above his left ear.
"What happened Jess? Do you remember?"
The younger man didn't answer. The blood trickling down the side of his face, and from Jess' nose, stood out in stark contrast to his ashen features and dark hair.
Corey hailed a passing cowboy to help him. Between them they got Jess up and took him to Doc Hansen's office.
"What're you going to tell Slim?" the cowboy asked.
"I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," was the lawman's reply. "Doc needs to look him over and see what, if anything, needs to be done for him."
The cowboy nodded, then took his leave.
"Mort," Doc Hansen came in to the private room where his patient lay on the table.
"Doc, take a good look at Jess, here, would you?"
"Of course. What happened to him this time and where's Slim? It's usually him that hauls Jess in here."
As the doctor rolled up his sleeves and started his examination, the sheriff told him what he knew - which wasn't much.
As Doc Hansen began his examination the patient moaned and stirred.
"Jess, can you hear me? It's Mort."
Jess' eyelids fluttered and opened momentarily but closed tight as soon as the light hit them.
"Come on, Jess, open your eyes and talk to me."
"M-Mort? Where-where's S-S-Slim?"
"Slim's back at the ranch - probably worrying about you," Corey told him. "Can you tell me what happened? Who did this to you? Those two men from the saloon?"
"Yeah."
While Jess tried to tell Sheriff Corey what had happened Doc Hansen checked Jess over for broken bones and such. Outside of a lot of bruises and the slight bleeding from his nose and above his ear it was certain that he wasn't badly hurt.
Half an hour later, Doc Hansen had finished his exam and turned to Mort, "There aren't any broken bones and no sign of internal injuries. He got off lucky this time."
"That mean I can go home?" Jess croaked.
"It's against my better judgment," Hansen said, "but as long as someone goes with you and you get plenty of rest when you get there."
"I'll take him," Mort said. "I want to make sure he gets there." Looking at his young friend
sternly he said, "Jess, you stay here while I go get a buckboard at the livery to take you home in."
"No," Jess found strength enough to insist. "No buckboard!"
Corey rolled his eyes. This young man was so blasted stubborn! The ranch was twelve miles from Laramie. Jess wasn't in any condition for that long ride but if he was going to be difficult about it what else could he do but put him on his horse? One thing was certain, it would be a long, slow and arduous trip for Jess.
'Now you look here you stubborn young fool," Mort Corey said. "You wouldn't be in this condition if you'd listened to me earlier! You're in no condition to ride a horse twelve feet, let alone twelve miles."
"No buckboard," Jess insisted.
The sheriff gave in, reluctantly. If he was going to get Jess home to Slim's care any time soon they needed to be on their way and not arguing about how to get there. The doctor wasn't happy about it but he, too, understood that Jess needed to be home as soon as possible and arguing about how to get him there was a waste of time.
It was full dark by the time they left. Hours had passed since the two strangers had beaten Jess up and the ex-gunfighter was found and taken to the doctor's office. Mort brought the horses around to Doc's house and helped his young friend into the saddle before mounting himself. Slowly they rode down the main street and out of town.
Less than three miles from town Jess slumped in the saddle unconscious. His face was white and drawn. Blood started to trickle from his nose and the other cut again.
"Jess? Are you sure you're ready for this? We could turn around and get you a room at Doc's or the hotel." Mort knew it was hopeless but he had to try.
"No." Jess came around again for a minute. "Take me home."
"Sure hope Slim's at the house," the lawman thought to himself. "We need to get this boy into bed as soon as possible."
It was a warm night with a full moon and thin clouds. Mort was relieved for it made the twelve mile journey from town to the Sherman Ranch and Relay Station safer than if it had been a dark night with no moon or stars.
As they approached the house the lawman was happy to see that there were lights on in two rooms - the kitchen and the bedroom. That had to mean that Slim was still awake. Probably pacing the floor worrying about his partner.
Mort dismounted at the hitching rail in front of the porch. He took Jess' hat, which was about to fall on the ground, walked to the door and opened it. He dropped Jess' hat on the table to his left and called Slim.
"Slim? Give me a hand out here. Jess has been hurt."
Slim came out of the kitchen at Mort's call, never dreaming of the condition he'd find his friend in. One look at Jess, slumped over the horse's neck, and the blood on his face, and the blond quickened his pace. He was off the porch and at Jess's side in four steps.
Corey reached up to help get Jess out of the saddle. "Easy does it now boy."
Reaching up he got the younger man around the waist and pulled him down. Sherman put one of Jess' arms around his shoulder while Mort got the other arm. Together they got Jess inside where Slim made the decision to put him in the bedroom rather than on the couch under the window. Gently the two older men laid their friend on the bed closest to the door.
While Mort removed Jess's gloves, Slim got water, and a towel, and proceeded to clean Jess' face of the blood.
"Looks like he's passed clean out again," the lawman commented.
"How'd it happen?" the blond asked.
"Jess wasn't able to tell me much of his side of it," Mort told him and explained what he knew had transpired and requesting that Slim keep Jess out of town for a few days. "I don't want any more trouble than I've already got."
With that parting comment, the two older men said their good-nights and Mort headed back to town. Slim then had a very brief conversation with Fred Powers, the intended target of Stanton and Dawson - the two bounty hunters/hired killers - then went back inside to sit at Jess' side until he came around an hour or so later.
Back in Laramie, Mort Corey went to his office and retrieved a double barreled shotgun. He put shells in both barrels and headed for the saloon. Steaming over what had happened to Jess, and realizing that the presence of the two hired killers was pushing Jess over the edge of responsible behavior, he was about to let the two men know exactly how he felt about them. Once there, he made it absolutely crystal clear that the two men were to leave Laramie at once. He didn't want to see any good men turn bad because of their intense dislike for men like them. For emphasis, after being told that he could only get one of them with that scattergun, he blasted the empty chair next to the one called Dawson.
"There are folks that can go along peaceful-like for a long time, never breaking any laws, and then your kind shows up and makes them mad enough to kill. That turns them into ... whatever you are. I'm not gonna wait for that to happen."
Mort watched with satisfaction as the two men got up and left the saloon, presumably to leave Laramie permanently. Little did he know that they would cause more trouble and wind up dead at the hands of Slim, Jess and their friend, Fred, when they invaded the home of Fred's soon to be bride.